Another year has slipped by with many achievements by our members and our hard-working Volunteers and Committee Members.

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1 Newsletter to Members 1 December 2018 Dear Members; Another year has slipped by with many achievements by our members and our hard-working Volunteers and Committee Members. I realise it has been some time since our last newsletter from SDA, communication could always be better, but I urge members with any concerns at all to drop one of your SDA or local Committee Members a line - our contact details are available on our web-page; Martin Collins Australian Dressage Championships Congratulations to the Dressage Tasmania members who represented us at our National Championships in October. The Fantastic Four of Bert Gibson, Philippa Cassidy, Linda Smink and Mandy Parsons competed with some personal best performances. Ably supported by Chef Sharni Radford and Caitlin Radford, this small and dedicated group performed admirably in the big pond and will be sure to lift us all in their wake! Special mention to the great team spirit shown by Tania Hay, Michelle Milne and Linda Smink whose fundraising efforts were outstanding, and much appreciated by those riders who were able to travel with their trusty steeds. Again, our non-riding representatives showed that Tasmania is well and truly punching above our weight in the Officials sphere. With Suzanne Betts as FEI Steward, Kerrie Swan-Bates FEI Judge, Bert Gibson, Sue Lamont and Suzan McDermott all accepting official appointments over the weekend. The proof in the pudding of our Judges Education System - I think we can all be proud of the work done in this space by Suzanne Betts and the JEP, with thanks to SDA, Equestrian Tas and the support of Tasmanian Sport and Recreation. It is very interesting to note that even high profile events have difficulty filling volunteer roles, with the Taswegians again stepping in to help where we could and endearing ourselves with our cando attitude. I know the organisers appreciate the assistance, as we do the exposure to a show of this size and quality. Sharni Radfords Chef d Equipe report and the rider s reports can be found on our web page;

2 State Development Squad 2 This year the SDA felt it was time to take a slightly different approach and invite combinations who have shown outstanding results at State Championships and at Horse/Pony of the Year to participate in the State Squad, providing they also met the criteria of obtaining National Championship qualifying scores. We congratulate the following combinations on gaining their place on the State Development Squad! Amanda Parsons and LBA Zhia Belinda Snooks and Neversfelde Romany Bernadette Gibson and Neversfelde Rafael Celia Conder-Lang & Nandewar World Wide Web Ellie Smith and Berenburg Jagger Karen Allen and Levante Kerrie Swan-Bates and Southern Lights Leanne Moore and Sheldene Benallen Linda Smink and Clearview Francesca Lydia Jackson and Malteaser R Meegan Daun and Sir Archiebald Penelope Moore and Her Royal Ruby Philippa Cassidy and Voltaire Stephanie Temple and Clearview Rosheem Sue Ellis and LP Musendan Peter Fischer will once again be our Squad Coach, Kerrie Swan-Bates and Bert Gibson will continue to act as Squad co-ordinators on behalf of SDA. Please contact them on ashcroft@sctelco.net.au or wec@hotmail.com.au respectively. The first State Development Squad clinic for 2019 will be held at Ashcroft in Acton on Friday the 18 th and Saturday the 19 th of January. Volunteers Unfortunately, even our volunteer organisers struggle to find enough time to do everything! There are many tasks both big and small, administrative and hands-on practical that go on in the lead-up and after-math (sorry I mean afterward!) of a competition to make these days happen and ensure we all get to have a great day out with our equine partners. One of the simplest things we can do to support our administrators is to enter early (There s a watch function on Nominate just click on the spectacles!), have all your paperwork with you and create a log-on with all of your details saved. As many of us are time-poor or already over-committed in the New Year the Organising Committees will do the back bone of the Competition pre-organisation (upload details to Nominate, book judges etc) but then will delegate via geography volunteer teams or crews to fill the other vital tasks, such as; providing judge s food, filling volunteer roles etc etc.

3 Riders will be given the option that if they do not wish to participate in their allocated competition to undertake a volunteer role, then they will be required to find a replacement or pay a $50 volunteer levy for that competition. If they fail to comply then their entries will be refused under EA rule th January competition at TEC has to be run by a volunteer group preferably made up of a group of people from the western shore as eastern shore riders have already run 2 this year. So far, I have had one positive response to the FB post I put up from Jenny about this. Need more than 1 person to put their hand up! If volunteers outside committee don't come forward, then competition will be in jeopardy. I have pulled information from the Nominate Clubs base for the DT membership list broken down into Southern bases addresses etc, full membership, junior and life. Next option will be to group members into a cluster and hand it to them to run with backup and support from SZ. Cheers Tania Officials will see the implementation of new rules around the requirement to have qualified Stewards assisting OC s in the running of our competitions. Please Contact Suzanne Betts if you feel that becoming a Steward is a stream of the officials pathway that you may like to consider. Save the Dates for; 1. Workshop with Sue Cunningham New Tests and Rules including DVDs Friday 1st February at the Royal Yacht Club, Hobart 7 pm for Workshop. Dinner from 6 pm in the bar. Must book for attending Workshop AND Dinner with Suzanne at chimo@netspace.net.au 2. Super G Seminar Become a Judge in a Weekend G Level Seminar with Sue Cunningham, Saturday 2 February at TEC. Time tba. Billets available for those wanting to attend from out of Hobart. Shadow Judging for Prospective Judges will be held at the Competition on Sunday 3 rd February. NB: The Saturday Seminar can be counted as a Workshop for other levels. Did you know? The SDA introduced a support scheme for judges up to D level to travel interstate and gain experience judging writing or being mentored by an approved mentor? For more details please contact Suzanne Betts Mob: e: chimo@netspace.net.au or click on the link;

4 Horseware Australia Equestrian Tasmania State Dressage Championships 4 Will again be held at TEC on 2-3 rd March Entries will be open soon via Nominate. Please make sure you support the final three competitions held in January and make sure you have your qualifying performances (two scores at the level entered of 58%) ready to submit with your entry. Entries Close Strictly at Midnight 28 th January to allow the OC to complete all the necessary pre-championships administrative checks, compile the draw etc etc Schedule, a full list of our sponsors and other details can be found at; Please support our sponsors without whom we could not run an event like this! Thanks to our Naming Rights Sponsor Horseware Australia Want to get involved? Please contact Event secretary Heather Stewart on or dressagetas.championships@gmail.com

5 Thirlstane Grounds 5 SDA were pleased to support the users of this facility with the financial support of the new automated watering system which will save many volunteer hours in the lead up to events. TEC Dressage Park - Arena 4 After detailed negotiations between SDA, DT Sth Zone, TEC Board, ETas and the Clarence City Council, the finances and the proposals for works have been approved. The decision has been made to build a new Arena 4, parallel (28 meters) from the entry to Arenas 2 & 3, and remove the existing Arena 4, including rehabilitating the area back to grass for a warm up area. Please see the attached Google Image (page 1). The reasons for this were; Cost to build a new arena and rehabilitate the old arena was comparable to the cost of repair to the whole surface of existing Arena 4; Safety issues are associated with spectators getting to the existing Arena 4. The new Arena will reduce risk of spectators moving through warmup areas; 3 Competition Arenas will be together allowing for increased profile and easier access for spectators, test collectors, Stewards etc. CCC required that we could not increase our footprint in the area so were required to replace like for like ; and Rehabilitation of the existing Arena 4 site for warmup area. We are in the final stages of negotiations with the successful Contractor and hope that works will start in late January. I have been assured by the Contractor that the new Arena 4 WILL be ready for the Championships on 2-3 March Cheers Karen All the Best for the Festive Season from the Tasmanian State Dressage Authority (SDA)